Cheesecake in a Loaf Pan

Cheesecake in a loaf pan makes 5 small slices of cheesecake, perfect for a small batch cheesecake for two!

I’m having the hardest time deciding the serving size of this small cheesecake made in a loaf pan. I think just how much cheesecake you can eat is personal. A personal accomplishment, if you ask me, but nevertheless, the answer varies.

Cheesecake is rich, so I only ate one of the little triangles, but my husband considers two triangles the perfect serving. This cheesecake in a loaf pan was eaten by 4 people in 1 day, so there’s that. Maybe that’s a little more than dessert for two, but it’s still smaller than a 9″ cheesecake.

More fun facts about this cheesecake: the gluten free option is there, and it’s delicious. I mixed 1.5 cups of unsweetened coconut flakes with an egg white, sugar, and melted butter to make the cheesecake crust. Can you use sweetened coconut flakes? Sure, if you’ve got ’em. (Omit the sugar in that case).

During a recent freezer purge, I found some frozen tart/ pie cherries in my freezer. I decided to make my own cherry pie filling for the topping, because then I could load it up with almond extract and slurp it with a straw. If you already have a can of cherry pie filling in your pantry, crack that baby open!

Line your bread loaf pan with parchment paper, press in the coconut crust (or graham cracker crust!) and bake for 25 minutes. It will be slightly golden brown after 25 minutes. It won’t be as golden brown as it is in the photo above until the entire cheesecake is done baking.

Meanwhile, make your cheesecake filling. I leave my cream cheese on the counter overnight before baking because there is nothing worse than lumps in cheesecake. Room temperature cream cheese is ESSENTIAL. It also prevents cracks, too!

Look at that crack-free crust! And it wasn’t even baked in a water bath!

While the cheesecake chills, make the cherry topping (or open a can of cherry pie filling!)

Preheat the oven to 325, and line a 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pan with parchment paper. See photo above for reference--it doesn't have to cover all sides--just the two longest sides.

In a medium bowl, stir together the coconut, sugar, butter, egg white and salt. The mixture will be very thick and paste-like. Press it into the bottom of the loaf pan.

Bake for 25 minutes until lightly golden brown.

Meanwhile, beat together the cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in the egg, followed by the vanilla and lemon juice.

Pour the cheesecake mixture over the coconut crust.

Lower the oven to 300, and bake the cheesecake for 30-40 minutes, until the entire surface is set and not sticky. It will have a slightly golden yellow hue. A toothpick inserted should not come out with wet batter.

Let the cheesecake cool near the oven (drastic temperature changes cause cracks in cheesecake). Once fully cooled, move to the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.

Next, make the cherry topping by combining the cherries and sugar in a small sauce pan. Bring to a simmer and cook for 1-2 minutes, until the cherries just start to soften.

In a small bowl, whisk together the cornstarch with 1 tablespoon of cool water.

Drizzle the cornstarch mixture into the cherries, and cook for another 2 minutes, until the cherry sauce thickens.

Remove from heat, and stir in the almond extract.

Notes

*You can make this with a standard graham cracker crust with 6 graham cracker sheets, 2 tablespoons of unsalted butter (melted) and 1 tablespoon of granulated sugar plus a pinch of salt. Pulse in a food processor until fine crumbs form, and then press into pan. Bake at 325 for 20-22 minutes, until golden brown around the edges. Lower the oven to 300 degrees before proceeding to bake the cheesecake mixture on top of it!

Oooh, this is a good one to have up my sleeve! Hubby loves cheesecake and I hate making a whole cake to have on hand. I love that pic - your little one is such a cutie! (And I have to say her cherry/beet puree sounds delicious too!)

OMG that coconut crust... I NEED it in my life! Normally the crust is my least favorite part of a cheesecake, but i could see myself loving this coconut version even more than the cheesecake, if that's even possible.

Oh my goodness! I don't know where to look first! That photo has everything! Sweet baby, gorgeous mamma, and delectable cheesecake! Overnight huh? I had no idea why all of my cheesecakes have a crack the size of of the Nile in em! I always thought I was cooling them off wrong or heating them too fast. I've tried everything! Well, but leaving the cream cheese on the counter overnight. Can't wait to try this recipe. Thank you for the great peek at Sweetgirl Camille!

This looks like a great dessert for my husband and I! Just wondered - my husband hates coconut, can I just sub. graham cracker crumbs for the coconut flakes? Would it be the same amount, and would I keep all the other ingredients? Thank you!

I haven’t tried it yet, but I think 1.5 cups of graham cracker crumbs would work. Use the same amount of butter and sugar. If it seems too dry, use an extra tablespoon of butter. And don’t do the pre-bake. Just pour the cheesecake on top and bake. But I totally haven’t tried it–this is just my best guess! Best of luck :)

I totally get you on the coconut thing. I have friends who hate it, too! And when I teach cooking classes, there’s always one person that’s against it. I haven’t tried it yet, but I think 1.5 cups of graham cracker crumbs would work. Use the same amount of butter and sugar. If it seems too dry, use an extra tablespoon of butter. And don’t do the pre-bake. Just pour the cheesecake on top and bake. But I totally haven’t tried it–this is just my best guess! Best of luck :)

Gosh this is gorgeous!! I love the "personal accomplishment" of eating a batch of cheesecake (cuz I could, you know)! I also really love the challenge you're participating in! What a fab idea (that I so need to take up on my own)!

I know this is heresy, but I'm not a coconut lover -- I actually can't stand it. What I AM is a cheesecake lover! Do you have any recommendations of other recipes I could steal the crust from and get approximately the right amount of crust for the loaf pan? Also, I just got new neighbors -- and I am inviting them over for drinks and dessert, as you suggested back in your Texas sheet cake post. Thanks for the idea! I considered inviting them just for drinks, but I'll take any excuse to eat more dessert! :)

That is so sweet! I hope you have an awesome night with your neighbors! I totally get you on the coconut thing. I have friends who hate it, too! And when I teach cooking classes, there's always one person that's against it. I haven't tried it yet, but I think 1.5 cups of graham cracker crumbs would work. Use the same amount of butter and sugar. If it seems too dry, use an extra tablespoon of butter. And don't do the pre-bake. Just pour the cheesecake on top and bake. But I totally haven't tried it--this is just my best guess! Best of luck :)

Yes! I love cheesecake but don't like dealing with all the drama -- water baths, cracking, too much/too little wiggle, cooling overnight in the fridge, blah, blah, blah. I am definitely trying this after my next grocery trip.

Delicious! The cheesecake did not last long! Due to coconut complaints around here I had to resort to a traditional graham cracker crust: 1/2 cup graham crumbs, 1 1/2 tbsp. melted butter, 1 1/2 tbsp. sugar...10 min at 325. I did have to bake the cheesecake for 15 extra minutes for it to set...this could be due to the fact the one brick of low-fat cream cheese found its way into the batter uninvited! This household enjoys cheesecake 'unadorned'...the flavor held up very well all on its own.

I made this cheesecake last week - it is very delicious, although a little dense (I'm thinking it's because it's all cream cheese and no sour cream). I made a graham cracker crust instead of the coconut one, because coconut makes me gag. I only used 4 graham cracker sheets (or 8 graham cracker squares), 1 tablespoon sugar, and 3 tablespoons melted butter. I baked it for about 10 minutes in the 300 degree oven, and then let it cool a bit before adding the cheesecake batter. Christina is right in demanding we allow the cream cheese overnight to get to room temp - I thought mine was ready after only a few hours, but then there were some lumps that never came out, although, I didn't notice them in the end cheesecake. It did take the cheesecake almost an hour to bake in my oven, but I live in a rental and notice other variations in cooking times. (I still have yet to invest in a thermometer to rest in the oven, but I'm thinking I should!) Thanks for the delicious cheesecake recipe - my husband thanks you, too! Cheesecake is one of his favorite desserts (besides pudding), and I never make it, because who wants to make a 9" cheesecake for two people?! THANK YOU FOR ALL YOUR SMALL BATCH DESSERTS - I LOVE LOVE LOVE THEM!!!!! (sorry for shouting :) have a great week!)

OMG!!! This is PERFECT!!! My hubby and I are both big coconut fans. I followed your recipe exactly, except that I live in FL so I only had to leave my cream cheese out for a few hours. Also, I had fresh strawberries on hand instead of canned cherries so I used that as my topping. I also had to bake about 50 minutes. A nice change from the graham cracker crust. I've tried a bunch of your recipes now and am never disappointed. Thanks for letting my family think I'm a genius in the kitchen. I now have to "clear my history " after checking out your site or they'll find out you're my secret weapon in the kitchen!

Im actually surprised that you havent gotten seriously sick from cream cheese sitting out overnight. First thing we learned in baking/chef school is...Bacteria DOUBLES every 20 min. If we were to leave anything out for more thsn an hour we would be kicked of site. In order.to get.around the lumps we would just strain the mixture thru a funnel type colender

Fantastic. Used this for Passover. Incredible! Use the crust to make s'mores brownies. Prepped boxed Passover brownies, poured into prepped crust, cook for 25 minutes, covered with mini marshmallows put back in turned off oven and drizzled with ganache. Keep up the great recipes!

I can't believe the gorgeous outcome of your cheesecake using no water bath! I'm seriously amazed (as usual)!! I am a huge fan of fruit but during the winter it can be hard to come by. I still have some frozen strawberries, peaches, raspberries & blueberries left. Maybe each piece topped differently for variety? Thank you SO much for your attention to detail in scaling down recipes we love. I cannot wait to give this a go!

This recipe is my go-to recipe for sure. It’s classic, delicious and everyone loves it.
I am always looking for ways to be organized in the kitchen, save some money and nourish their bodies. Keeping a heating day once seven days keep my kids healthy and happy and I totally organized and on top of things. Yay me! With this recipe, you can’t go wrong. I not only make loaves, but I also make muffins and bars with this batter. The best part about muffins is that you can bake up as many as you like and freeze them in a large freezer zip lock bag and pull out for breakfast, lunches or snacks as needed. It’s perfect!!

On facebook its shows you using graham cracker crust for the cheesecake I do like the coconut crust because I am gluten free. If I wanted to do graham cracker crust because I could use gluten free graham crackers where is that recipe.

Hi Cheryl! Sorry for the confusion: here is a version of this recipe using a graham crust: https://www.dessertfortwo.com/lemon-blueberry-cheesecake-for-two/ I haven't tried it with GF grahams, but I'm sure it would work! :)

This was a nice dessert that turned out well. I was a little skeptical at first on the crust being just coconut but it turned out to be fine in cutting the strong richness of the cheesecake. I only had sweetened coconut so I didn't add much sugar to it. Everything else, I stuck to the recipe and it tasted and looked great!

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